surveillance
noun
sur·veil·lance
sər-ˈvā-lən(t)s 
also
-ˈvāl-yən(t)s
or
-ˈvā-ən(t)s
: close watch kept over someone or something (as by a detective)
also
: supervision see also immune surveillance
Synonyms
Examples of surveillance in a Sentence
government surveillance of suspected terrorists
The bank robbery was recorded by surveillance video cameras.
Recent Examples on the Web
The complaint details evidence police say ties Anderson to the crimes, including surveillance video, witness accounts and phone records.
—
Zoe Sottile, CNN, 14 Apr. 2024
The car had stolen license plates and was captured on surveillance video during the burglaries, Constable Mark Herman told the station.
—Stephen Sorace, Fox News, 14 Apr. 2024
Prior to this revolution, various commercial drones played critical roles, primarily for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.
—IEEE Spectrum, 10 Apr. 2024
Under the law, the surveillance activity can continue so long as there are active court orders allowing it, even if the underlying statute expires.
—Charlie Savage, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Roasted had surveillance footage that showed Rucker arriving only moments before the deadly incident.
—Sarah Al-Arshani, USA TODAY, 3 Apr. 2024
No one was spotted on surveillance footage leaving or entering the home on the day of the double murder, until Gama’s parents showed up around noon, the warrant stated.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 3 Apr. 2024
An Instagram video on Hylton’s page appearing to contain surveillance footage from the property shows three large vehicles arriving at the home and many armed agents pouring into the compound.
—Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 2 Apr. 2024
The homeowner wasn’t inside but saw two men breaking into the home on live surveillance footage, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said on social media.
—Ishani Desai, Sacramento Bee, 1 Apr. 2024
Zoe Sottile, CNN, 14 Apr. 2024
The car had stolen license plates and was captured on surveillance video during the burglaries, Constable Mark Herman told the station.
—Stephen Sorace, Fox News, 14 Apr. 2024
Prior to this revolution, various commercial drones played critical roles, primarily for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.
—IEEE Spectrum, 10 Apr. 2024
Under the law, the surveillance activity can continue so long as there are active court orders allowing it, even if the underlying statute expires.
—Charlie Savage, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Roasted had surveillance footage that showed Rucker arriving only moments before the deadly incident.
—Sarah Al-Arshani, USA TODAY, 3 Apr. 2024
No one was spotted on surveillance footage leaving or entering the home on the day of the double murder, until Gama’s parents showed up around noon, the warrant stated.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 3 Apr. 2024
An Instagram video on Hylton’s page appearing to contain surveillance footage from the property shows three large vehicles arriving at the home and many armed agents pouring into the compound.
—Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 2 Apr. 2024
The homeowner wasn’t inside but saw two men breaking into the home on live surveillance footage, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said on social media.
—Ishani Desai, Sacramento Bee, 1 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'surveillance.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near surveillance
Cite this Entry
“Surveillance.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surveillance. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
surveillance
noun
sur·veil·lance
sər-ˈvā-lən(t)s
also -ˈvāl-yən(t)s,
or -ˈvā-ən(t)s
: close watch
under surveillance
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